Drop-down eye protection for safety helmets

ABSTRACT

Hinged receivers are provided in the space above the wearer&#39;s ears on either side of a helmet, and protective eyewear received within the receivers is accommodated for stowage in a space toward or at the front of the helmet.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to and the benefits of U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 60/650,147, filed on Feb. 7, 2005, the entiredisclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

GOVERNMENT FUNDING

This invention was made with Government support under Contract No.DAAD16-01-C-0061 awarded by the U.S. Army. The Government has certainrights in the invention.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to safety helmets, in particular a device toprovide integrated eye protection which may be used by the helmet weareror optionally stowed in a protected area.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Helmets for head protection are worn in a variety of environments andfor various purposes. While some helmets provide full-face protection bymeans of a transparent face shield, other helmets are open-faced. Inopen-face helmets, if eye protection is desired, it may be added by thewearer optionally wearing eyeglasses or goggles. In either case thereare disadvantages. For example, the fit of the helmet around the templesmay interfere with the eyeglass frames, making it difficult oruncomfortable for the eyeglasses to slide back and over the ears. Theelastic strap or the frames of goggles may also interfere with thehelmet shell or other accessories on the helmet. Even when glasses orgoggles are properly adapted to a helmet, sometimes by special designs,often they must be stowed in a separate area when they are not needed.As a result, eyeglasses or goggles may be lost or damaged while not inuse. Additionally, the need to stow the eye protection in a separatearea can result in delay or difficulty in locating and adjusting it whenthe need arises. A need therefore exists for attaching commerciallyavailable eyewear to a protective helmet such that it can be readilydeployed or stowed according to the user's need, and optionally removedfrom the helmet for stand-alone use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, hinged tubular receivers areprovided in the space above the wearer's ears on either side of ahelmet, and the protective eyewear is accommodated for stowage in aspace toward or at the front of the helmet. The receivers may beattached to the helmet, the liner, or components of the suspensionsystem such as a headband that circumscribes the head. Protectiveeyewear having substantially straight arms is manually inserted into thereceivers. The eyewear may be adjusted for proper fit by sliding thearms within the tubes of the receivers, which may, in some embodiments,engage the arms of the eyewear frictionally to maintain positionfollowing wearer adjustment of the eyewear to properly sit on the bridgeof the nose.

The receivers themselves may be attached by a rotating, hinged orotherwise pivotable element, typically at a point rearward of thewearer's ear, for wearer adjustment as well as for rotating the eyewearupward to a stowed position. Space is provided within the helmet (e.g.,between the shell and the impact liner and suspension components at thefront of the helmet) to accommodate protective stowage of the eyewearbetween the wearer's head and the outer shell of the helmet. Means forsecuring the eyewear in the stowed position and allowing it to bedeployed easily may include, for example, a flexible clip attached tothe headband or the helmet shell within the stowage area and extendingdownward so that it is accessible to the wearer. When the eyewear isplaced in the up position, the flexible clip mechanically engages it toresist the eyewear inadvertently dropping down. When the wearer wants todeploy the eyewear, the flexible clip is pulled, thereby releasing theeyewear so that it can be manually pulled down and adjusted to fit thewearer's face. Alternatively or in addition, the stowage area can belined with a compressible foam sized so that the eyewear is frictionallyengaged between the compressible foam and the impact liner (orsuspension components at the front of the helmet) when the eyewear ispushed up for stowage by the wearer.

The present invention thereby provides protected and readily availablestowage for the eyewear when not in use, and allows the use of manystandard eyewear products that easily can be fitted to the helmetwithout the need for tools.

Accordingly, in a first aspect, the invention comprises a pivotingassembly facilitating stowage and withdrawal of protective eyewear withrespect to a helmet. The assembly comprises a pair of receivers forreceiving the eyewear and means facilitating rotation of the receiversbetween a stowage position, with the eyewear within the helmet shell,and an operational position in front of a wearer's eyes. In general, theeyewear comprises a pair of arms and the receivers frictionally engagethe arms.

In a second aspect, the invention comprises a safety helmet including ashell and, within the shell, a pivoting assembly facilitating stowageand withdrawal of protective eyewear. The pivoting assembly comprises apair of receivers for receiving the eyewear, and means facilitatingrotation of the receivers between a stowage position, with the eyewearwithin the helmet shell, and an operational position in front of awearer's eyes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, like reference characters generally refer to the sameparts throughout the different views. Also, the drawings are notnecessarily to scale, emphasis instead generally being placed uponillustrating the principles of the invention. In the followingdescription, various embodiments of the present invention are describedwith reference to the following drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows the right side of a helmet with protective eyewear in thedown position;

FIG. 2 shows the right side of a helmet with protective eyewearindicated in the stowed position.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the preferred embodiment of one of thereceivers, in this case the receiver on the right side of the helmet.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of an alternate embodiment of one of thereceivers.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of a helmet with protective eyewear inaccordance with the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to FIG. 1, a helmet shell 51 is shown from the right sideof the wearer's head (the left side has symmetrical features).Protective eyewear 53 is shown in its normally worn position on thewearer's face with arms 55 inserted into the receivers 57 of the presentinvention, as further described below. A stowage space 60, described ingreater detail in connection with FIG. 5, is located inside the front ofhelmet shell 51. FIG. 2 shows the eyewear 53 in the stowed position inthe stowage space 60. In the stowed position, the eyewear 53 is withinthe envelope of the helmet shell.

The helmet 51 is secured to the wearer's head by a conventionalchin-strap 61. In a preferred embodiment, a pair of pull-tabs 63 (theright tab being shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) slide along the downward portionof chin-strap 61 and are attached to the receivers 57 by a draw line 69.To lower the eyewear from the stowage space 60, the wearer pullsdownward on the pull-tabs 63 on left and right sides of the helmet 51.This pulling action is transmitted via the draw line 69 to the receivers57, causing the receivers to rotate about a pivot 72 until the eyewear53 descends from the stowage space 60. Additional adjustment by thewearer to fit the eyewear 53 precisely onto the bridge of the wearer'snose may be accomplished by sliding the arms 55 of the eyewear 53longitudinally within the receivers 57.

One embodiment of the receivers 57 (in this case the receiver on theright side of the helmet 51) is shown in FIG. 3. The receiver 57 ispreferably fabricated from a semi-flexible material (e.g., ABS orpolyethylene plastic) to form an elongated tubular shape. The opening 75at the front of the receiver is sized to allow the arms 55 of eyewearframes to be inserted and to flex the material of the receiver 57 asnecessary to provide a frictional engagement therewith. The receiver 57also has a mounting hole 72, which fits over a post 78 on an interiorelement—e.g., the headband 81—of the helmet. The receiver 57 can beretained on the post 78, while remaining free to rotate, by any suitableexpedient; the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 3 uses a pair ofcut-outs 84 a, 84 b, which fit over complementary tabs 87 a, 87 b ofretention post 78. When the receiver 57 is first mounted onto theheadband 81, it is oriented such that the cut-outs 84 a, 84 b align withand pass over the tabs 87 a, 87 b. The angular displacement betweencut-outs 84 a, 84 b and the tabs 87 a, 87 b is such that receiver 57 maybe rotated through its normal range of positions without aligning thetabs and the cut-outs, thereby ensuring retention of receiver 57 on post78.

Also shown in FIG. 3 is the pull-tab 63 attached by means of draw line69 to a connecting area 90 of the receiver 57. The draw line 69 can bemade of plastic (e.g., nylon or polyester) or natural fibers such ascotton, woven or monofilament, and may be secured to the pull-tab 63 andconnecting area 90 by a knot, loop, welding or other means conventionalin the art. The length of the draw line 69 is chosen so that when thereceiver 57 is rotated to the uppermost position for stowage, thepull-tab 63 is still accessible below the edge of the helmet shell 51.

An alternate embodiment of the present invention, which dispenses withthe draw line, is shown in FIG. 4. In this embodiment, a flexible loop93 is provided at the front of the headband 81, and may be attached toor integral with the headband. The headband 81 and flexible loop 93 maybe fabricated from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic. Flexibleloop 93 has a protruding feature 95 designed to mechanically engage thebridge 96 of the eyewear 53 when the latter is pushed up into the stowedposition. The loop 93 extends downward to provide an exposed end 99,which is accessible to the wearer when the eyewear 53 is in the stowedposition. To lower the eyewear to the operational position, the wearerpulls on the exposed end 99 of flexible loop 93, thereby urging theeyewear downward and releasing the engagement between protruding feature95 and bridge 96. Further adjustment is accomplished by the wearermanually pulling the eyewear the remaining distance to fully remove itfrom stowage area 60 and sliding the arms 55 within the opening 75 ineach of the receivers 57 so that the eyewear rests comfortably on thewearer's nose.

A better view of the interior of a helmet in accordance with theinvention is shown in FIG. 5. The helmet shell 51 includes an interiorwall 100, the headband 81 mounted to the shell and generally concentricwith its outer contour, and, optionally, a liner 105. The headband 81generally comprises a flexible (e.g., plastic) band that may befabricated as a thin, flat component which is curved into a circularshape by, for example, joining its ends together. The band may, forexample, be fabricated by injection molding, but alternative fabricationtechniques as are well known in the art can also be used. The ends ofthe band 107 a, 107 b, may be joined at the back of the wearer's head ina manner that allows adjustment of the circumference of the headband.The headband 81 generally also comprises a plurality of connecting arms108 to facilitate joinder to the helmet shell 51 at multiple positions.The receivers 57 may be pivotably engaged to headband 81, as describedabove, or may instead be pivotably engaged to the interior wall 100 oreven to the liner 105 as indicated at 109 and 110, respectively.

The stowage space 60 is generally between the interior wall 100 and theheadband 81. A compressible foam pad 111 lies between the interior wall100 and the protective eyewear 53 to protect the lenses from abrasion.The eyewear 53 can be retained in the stowed position by frictionalcontact with pad 111 or other suitable expedient; the embodiment shownin FIG. 5 uses a mechanical engagement between protruding feature 95 andthe bridge 96 of the eyewear 53. A cutout 114 in pad 111 allows theflexible loop 93 to move when the exposed end 99 is manually pulled bythe wearer.

Having described certain embodiments of the invention, it will beapparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other embodimentsincorporating the concepts disclosed herein may be used withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. The describedembodiments are to be considered in all respects as only illustrativeand not restrictive.

1. For use in connection with a protective helmet comprising a shell, arotational assembly facilitating stowage and withdrawal of protectiveeyewear, the assembly comprising: a. a pair of receivers for receivingthe eyewear; and b. means facilitating rotation of the receivers betweena stowage position, with the eyewear within the helmet shell, and anoperational position in front of a wearer's eyes.
 2. The rotationalassembly of claim 1 wherein the eyewear comprises a pair ofsubstantially straight arms and the receivers frictionally engage thearms.
 3. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the rotation-facilitating meansis attached to at least one receiver and extends so as to be accessibleto the wearer when the eyewear is in the stowage position.
 4. Theassembly of claim 1 wherein the rotation-facilitating means areconfigured to act on the eyewear and extend so as to be accessible tothe wearer when the eyewear is in the stowage position.
 5. The assemblyof claim 1 wherein the helmet comprises a headband and the rotationalassembly is configured to engage the headband.
 6. The assembly of claim1 wherein the rotational assembly is configured to engage an interiorsurface of the helmet shell.
 7. The assembly of claim 1 wherein thehelmet comprises a liner and the rotational assembly is configured toengage the liner.
 8. The assembly of claim 1 wherein each receivercomprises a draw line.
 9. A protective helmet comprising: a. a shellcomprising an interior with sufficient space to contain, when the helmetis worn, protective eyewear in a stowed configuration; and b. within theshell, a rotational assembly configured to receive the eyewear andfacilitate movement between a stowage position, with the eyewear withinthe helmet shell, and an operational position in front of a wearer'seyes.
 10. The helmet of claim 9 wherein the eyewear comprises a pair ofsubstantially straight arms that are frictionally engaged by therotational assembly.
 11. The helmet of claim 9 further comprising acompressible material within the shell for frictionally engaging theeyewear to retain it in the stowed position.
 12. The helmet of claim 9further comprising a flexible protruding member within the shell formechanically engaging the eyewear to retain it in the stowed position.13. The helmet of claim 9 wherein the rotational assembly is configuredto engage an interior surface of the helmet shell.
 14. The helmet ofclaim 9 further comprising a liner, the rotational assembly beingconfigured to engage the liner.
 15. The helmet of claim 9 furthercomprising a headband, the rotational assembly being configured toengage the headband.
 16. The helmet of claim 15 wherein the headbandcomprises a flexible loop for engaging the eyewear, downward pressure onthe flexible loop brings the eyewear into the operational position. 17.The helmet of claim 9 wherein each receiver comprises a draw line.